Red Smoke
by Artorias The Unbelievable
Summary: Destiny is an interesting concept. It'd be reality, if not for Naruto and the series of unfortunate events he creates, just by being himself. When Heaven and Hell clash, Naruto must decide: Fight for a world that would crush you under it's heel, or be it's harbinger of death? Naruto Uzumaki has a choice to make. Multiple Dark Souls references, usage of characters included. NaruHina
1. Different Beginnings

**Red ****Smoke** _**The new one: a joint story I'm set on completing... no matter what...**_

**Author's note: My first story... Let me tell you now, it will be very slowly updated, simply because I am in school right now and I don't live on the internet... sorry, but anyway this will most likely be epic-length and will probably take me a while to finish, because I'm making the plot up right now, so this is like the 'prologue' of the story per say. There are kinks in my plot right now and I am trying very hard to UN-kink it. Will it follow canon? Kind of. Remember, this is my first story, and before you ask, yes, I am getting outside help with it. He is a member by the name of RedwolfBm86... By The Way, Naruto will seem to be God-like in later chapters... trust me, he will have a weakness or two. AU**

**Hanabi is only three years behind Hinata in this work... you will see how this affects things later.**

**Prologue**

**Naruto and Jiraiya have succeeded in persuading Tsunade to become the Godaime Hokage, and they returned to Konoha. Naruto had been awaiting more training from the Toad Sage, when The Last Uchiha defected. Naruto successfully returned The Last Uchiha from the Valley Of The End, even with the life-threatening injuries he sustained. They even managed to capture one of the Sound Five, a girl by the name of Tayuya. Tsunade convinced Sakura to start training to become a Med-nin, as she saw a little of herself in the girl. Though happy that the Uchiha was returned, many people were still angry at Naruto because of the condition he was returned in. Battered, bruised, bloodied and in a coma, Sasuke Uchiha was not leaving the village again anytime soon...that was for sure.**

**Arc 1:The Mission**

"Hey Ayame-neesan, I'll have ten bowls of miso pork ramen!" An energetic blonde yelled, approaching the Ichiraku Ramen stand with his hands behind his head. "And hello to you too Naruto-kun!" Ayame greeted him warmly."Ten bowls coming up!" She sat the first bowl down and went to go finish the others. As Naruto was about to begin his first bowl, a young girl timidly approached the stand.

"Ano... h-hello Naruto-Kun"she muttered, careful to keep her eyes towards the ground.

"Hey Hinata, whats up?" Said girl was blushing furiously and poking her index fingers together."U-um...well, I-I was w-wondering i-if y-you...", she steeled herself and went on,"I was wondering if you mind if I-I joined you f-for l-lunch?" She squeaked out the last part, but Naruto heard her... mostly... "Of course not Hinata! I was just getting some ramen and then going to train. What about you? How's your team been lately?" Naruto had turned to her as she sat down on the stool next to his, just as Ayame came out with two more bowls for Naruto.

"Oh, another customer!" Ayame smiled and asked, "And what would you like, Little Miss Hyuuga?" Hinata turned to Ayame. "Hello Ayame-san. I would like o-one miso shrimp ramen, please." Ayame smiled and stole a glance at Naruto as she put the bowls she was holding down and went to go make Hinata's meal.

Hinata turned to Naruto and tried to answer his question. "W-well, I was about t-to go train with my O-otou-san after lun-" She never got to finish her sentence, as an ANBU with a cat mask appeared behind them. "Uzumaki-san, Hokage-sama would like to see you for a mission. If I were you, I would not wait, as Tsunade-sama also has something that she thinks will...interest you. Also, Hyuuga-sama, you are to report to the Hokage's office later today, as she has an offer she wishes to extend to you. That is all. Good day." The feminine-sounding ANBU vanished in a Shunshin, but not before Naruto had finished eating ALL ten bowls, as Ayame brought the rest out while the ANBU was speaking. Hinata hadn't even taken a bite...

"Well, see ya later Hinata! I don't want to make Tsunade-Baachan mad!" He hopped off his stool, and paid for both his and Hinata's meals. He took to the rooftops as he made his way to the Hokage Tower.

* * *

Hinata was disappointed she couldn't even spend a little more time with her crush, and slowly finished her bowl of ramen, before she started heading back to the Hyuuga clan compound. To be completely honest with herself, she hated training with her father, and by extension, her sister. But that didn't mean she didn't love her sister. Quite the opposite, in fact. She was worried for her sister, mainly because of their father. Hinata took after their mother, who was kind, caring, and full of compassion. Hanabi took after their father, being stubborn and having quite a temper under that facade of calmness. Hinata had honestly tried her best to show Hanabi that their mother would have wanted her to act differently had she been around. Hanabi had apparently decided that since she wasn't, she didn't care, and would act how she felt 'appropriate', given the situation.

A typical response of the Hyuuga Elders.

Those relics had been meddling in the clan heads' affairs for years, and apparently were tearing her family apart. It was one thing for them to talk to her father about patrol routes around the compound, but it was another thing to try and manipulate one of the probable clan heads, namely her sister! She was only ten for Kami's sake! Hinata really needed to set her sister straight, but that would involve her physically and verbally telling her younger sister off.

Hinata couldn't do that; she loved her sister, and she didn't want her to be branded with the caged bird seal when it was time to choose a clan head. But at the same time, Hinata didn't want to be branded either... What could she do?

She was thrown out of her thoughts when her cousin appeared beside her. "Hinata, Hiashi-sama requests an audience with you. It would be wise to hurry... he is not in a good mood, I'm afraid." The look on his face told her all he needed to know.

* * *

On his way to the Hokage tower, Naruto dropped down off of the roof he was on and into the crowded street below. He needed some shuriken badly, but the weapons shop he usually went to was across town, and he didn't really have the time to go and either find another one or go to his usual place.

With a shrug, he thought, 'Eh, I'll be fine for now'. He was about to start roof-hopping again when he bumped into someone and ended up on the ground, looking up at who had put him there.

Standing at what Naruto thought was at least 5' 10", he was stockier than he was tall. On the outside, the man was wearing a very large black overcoat, which seemed to hide most of his body, except that it was unbuttoned in the middle, allowing Naruto to see what appeared to be armor. But not ninja armor. No, this armor appeared to be a bit extreme even for a samurai. It looked as if it was carved out of a boulder, and was positioned in a way that one would think there were numerous layers of it on him at once (Havel's armor from Dark Souls). Naruto moved his eyes up and saw the man was a pale white with slicked-back grey hair that matched the color of his armor. He also had sunglasses on. While the sunglasses were common, people usually weren't this pale in Konoha.

The man seemed to slowly move his head down and focus on Naruto. For what felt like a split-second, the mans eyebrows shot up, and then abruptly settled. He reached out and grabbed Naruto's arm, hauling him to his feet, and, with a very curt nod, pushed past Naruto quite quickly, heading for what seemed like the village gates. "Sorry kid", the man mumbled, his voice deep yet smooth. As he was walking away, the man turned to look one more time at Naruto, making sure he wasn't hallucinating.

Naruto was confused, but he got a lot of weird reactions from people, so it didn't bother him as much as it should have. What did bother Naruto was that when the man turned to look at him, Naruto could've sworn he saw the glint of a hitai-ate in his overcoat. But before he could even think about what to do, the man vanished in a Shunshin, reappearing on a roof across the street, and with one final second of pause between them, started roof-hopping towards the village gates.

Naruto could only utter a few words, and it just about summed up the whole experience. "What the hell?!" Sure, people acted weird around him, but this man seemed terrified of him, as if he was going to morph into some terrible beast and slaughter him.

Shaking away those thoughts, he resumed his trek to the Hokage Tower, forgetting about his lack of Shinobi gear at the moment.

* * *

He was running for all he was worth, which was pretty damn fast considering who he was. He was pretty sure the Raikage would have trouble keeping up with him at the moment.

But never mind that, he had more urgent matters at hand... and most likely on his tail. He was sure Konoha's ANBU had seen him, and if that kid was who he thought it was, he was going to either have some serious problems or some very upsetting news. Jumping from the trees down onto a bridge, he tried to calm his rising heart rate and make sense of what was going on. This was his first spying mission after all.

He had been sent in to see how Konoha was doing after the invasion, and to see about rumors of The Last Uchiha going crazy and defecting. Not to mention, to check on something Kurotsuchi said she'd seen. She had been there when the invasion started, and tried to leave when it got a little too hectic, but was blocked by the Ichibi jinchuuriki transforming into his tailed beast state. She was about to turn around and fight her way out when, of all things, a giant toad appeared with a blonde boy on top of it. She had gotten to a better vantage point of the fight and was able to identify the toad as Gamabunta, boss summon of the toads. She told him that she wasn't too sure, but she thought she saw that the boy on Gamabunta was eerily similar to the Yondaime's pictures she had seen, except for the orange pants he wore.

What was really the kicker was that he was a jinchuuriki! Kurotsuchi had seen him when the red chakra of the Kyuubi no Kitsune enveloped him. She could feel it's malevolent energy pierce through the Ichibi's blood lust. And she knew what Yokai was. She had hung out with Roshi a lot before he went soul-searching. Yet, it was pure luck that he ran into the little shit in the middle of the street and was able to get a good look at him. And boy, did it scare the living hell out of him. He was so similar to who he assumed was the boy's father that the only real differences were the whiskers and that the Yondaime had slightly longer hair. It was just terrifying to know that, while technically he was dead, a part of him lived on.

Did he hold any grudge against the Yondaime? A little, but not extreme. Seeing three whole platoons full of your friends die in a flash was something you couldn't just 'forgive and forget', per say.

He slowed down and started walking across the bridge, thinking about the reaction of not only his comrades, but his Kage as well. Kami there was going to be a shit storm in Iwa when people found out.

What were Iwa's options regarding this, though? They couldn't just demand Konoha to give them the son of their greatest hero, and war over a child? He thought not. The Tsuchikage would likely agree with him. Yet if that didn't happen, and they did go to war, the Iwagakure agent wasn't certain they could win. Konoha still had two Sannin, an array of elites, and then, the kid. Heir to one of the most feared ninja to ever live, coupled with the strongest of the nine bijuu lurking just beneath the surface, and apparent apprentice to Jiraiya the Toad Sannin, the young child was destined for greatness, if not magnificent already. The amount of power in one mortal being...

Way too much firepower there for Iwa to handle, especially since their two Jinchuuriki decided to hit the road, and, uh, not come back. There was no way they would get Han back. Roshi, maybe. So in short, if there were a war, and just Konhagakure and Iwagakure were involved, they'd get pummeled. Now, alliances coming into play... Kumo would probably ally with Iwa, while Suna would get with Konoha. Kiri was a wild card at best. He wouldn't bet it would be an easy or short war at all.

He barely even realized it when he stepped off of the bridge and into what seemed like a forest of great Okanowa trees. Just as he was about to jump back in the trees and continue on his way, he knew something was wrong.

He glanced curiously at his surroundings. Something just seemed... off. Flaring his chakra to break what he thought was a genjutsu, he was shocked to discover that he was surrounded by ANBU. Three that he could see, with one hiding somewhere else, probably under the bridge behind him. ANBU worked in fours, he knew that. What he didn't know was that they were this quick! With an almost depressed sigh, his thoughts turned a bit morbid. '_Man, I really didn't want to kill anyone on this trip_'.

One of the ANBU, the Squad leader to be exact, was the first one to speak. "We're going to have to ask that you remove your overcoat and weapons. If you don't comply we will be forced to take the necessary measures to make you do so."

With a perplexed and almost sheepish look, the unidentified man spoke. "Alright I know this looks bad and all, but if you let me leave, no one will get hurt. We'll all just walk away." He slowly started inching away, before the ANBU Squad leader had decided that now was not the time to play games. Palming four kunai as quickly as possible, the ANBU Squad Leader spoke again.

"If you do not comply with my demands, I'm afraid we may have to kill you. There's no sense in starting an international incident over all of this, now is there?" Obviously, the spy didn't seem to agree with the ANBU and launched himself backwards. The ANBU was quick to empty his hand of all sharp objects and send them hurtling towards the uncooperative bastard.

After one slight moment of narrow dodging, done by the spy, the rest of the ANBU proceeded to all throw some sort of object at the man, including a fuuma shuriken and several kunai with exploding tags on them. But before any of them made contact, the man flashed a hand seal and mumbled something that the ANBU members didn't quite catch. The earth around the man's left foot shot to the right, pushing him far away from the blast radius, and very close to one of the ANBU.

The ANBU closest to the direction the spy shot off to suddenly stopped moving. Before the other two could react, an uchigatana was seen sticking through their now-dead teammate. Shrugging off his overcoat and pulling his sword out of the dead ANBU operative, the man was seen to be putting an odd-looking helmet on. It matched his now exposed armor, which was grey. The ANBU Squad leader had to curse his luck for who he just tried to assault. "That's Ha-!" The other ANBU Squad member tried to tell his leader, but it was too late. In what seemed like a grey flash, the heavily armored ninja separated the Squad member's head from his body and landed on the same branch the now dead ANBU used to be, before dropping down to the forest floor. The ANBU Squad leader was getting nervous. He knew he couldn't win by himself, but maybe with back-up...

"Washi! Assist!" The Squad leader immediately darted off to his right as Washi landed on the opposite side of their target. Surrounding their enemy on both the left and right side, Panda, the ANBU Squad leader, was going through possible scenarios of capture. However, his partner had a different idea. Flashing through a few hand seals, Washi struck. "Katon: Flame Bullet!"

"Doton: Mud Wall!"

* * *

"You're kidding me! A D-ranked mission? To what, pick weeds?! Come on Baa-Chan I did enough of those before the Chuunin Exams, and now more? This is bullsh-", Naruto had to stop talking and duck under the paperweight that was hummed across the room, intent on making a hole in the young boy's head.

Whoosh!

The paperweight soared through the space his head used to be in. "Hey Baa-Chan, I think you mis-" The next paperweight didn't miss, hitting him right in the forehead, and knocked him on his butt.

"Ow! Hey you old hag, that hurt!", Naruto exclaimed, rubbing the spot where the paperweight hit him.

"...Give me one good reason why I shouldn't hit you hard enough to send you to Kumo and back...",Tsunade growled out, an angry expression on her face. "And Naruto, you don't have a choice. Not only is this guy on the Council, but for some odd reason, he requested you personally." Her face lit up slightly. "I'm betting that if you do a good job, then next time you take the chuunin exams, this guy would vote for you to be promoted." She winked at the end, basically saying that if the Council member didn't vote for him, his life would be hell.

"Yeah! People must be realizing how awesome I am if they are requesting me personally! I'll be Hokage in no time, Dattebayo!" He yelled, now standing in his infamous pose, his thumb up and all. But then, the smile was gone, and he adopted a thinking pose, right before face palming.

"...Baa-Chan...did you forget how much you suck at gambling? With your luck, I'd get jumped by some assassin or something as soon as I walked out the gates...". He was exasperatedly waving his arms by the time he finished, earning him a glare from the Hokage.

But then she took on a tired expression, and, with a sigh, decided arguing would only make her want to drink more. She began to explained the specifics of the mission. "The job site is about a few miles outside of the village, actually one of the few D-ranks that aren't confined behind the village walls. The client wants you to assist in herding animals and fending off any predators that might go for his livestock. You'll be spending the night, so pack for two days. You're allowed to bring a single teammate along, but that is strictly up to you." Tsunade looked up and in to Naruto's eyes, saying, "I would recommend bringing someone. You never know when things are going to head south, like your first C-rank mission. Besides, it never hurts to have a little back up. Now, the real question is: Who are you going to bring along?"

Naruto was about to answer her when a short figure with bubble gum- pink hair kicked the door open, an incredible amount of documents and reports occupying her arms. "Today's paperwork, Tsunade-shishio!" Hefting the huge amount of paper on to the Hokage's desk, Sakura caught her breath as soon as she set the paper mountain down.

"No Sakura, Naruto. She's helping me here for a while." 'Man, she read my mind', Naruto thought as he frowned. She continued talking. "The available personnel from the Konoha 12 are Shikamaru, Kiba, Tenten, Shino, and Ino. Please, pick a person, any person."

Naruto scratched the back of his head, thinking. Shikamaru was smart but lazy. Kiba was cool, hyper like him, and Akamaru was pretty cool too. he didn't really know any of the others that well, so they were out. But he didn't think he'd get much done arguing and fighting with Kiba over who the better shinobi was. Better to just have an easy mission and relax than get all worked up, even if Shikamaru did the bare minimum.

Naruto, you do realize that Shikamaru would be the commanding officer, right?" Naruto's face was a picture-perfect moment, his expression stating 'That's Not Fair'.

"But I'm the one that was requested! He can't lead if he's my sidekick!" To her credit, Tsunade held her laughter in check long enough for him to realize that she didn't give a shit. He crossed his arms and pouted as she signed the scroll. With a flick of her wrist, she sent the scroll up in the air, making Naruto catch it. He would have, if not for another person snatching it out of the air.

"Whatcha got here squirt? Tsunade making you do her laundry?" Coming in through the window at that precise moment, Jiraiya loved to mess with these two, but he was lucky enough today to catch both of them at the same time. Of course, he wasn't always welcome to.

"GIMME THAT BACK YOU OLD PERVERT!" Frantically jumping in the air trying to get the scroll, Naruto couldn't even touch it, let alone grab it. Jiraiya's laughter at the kid's plight abruptly stopped when he could hear Tsunade growl behind him. Handing the energetic little monkey his mission scroll, he turned to Tsunade. "You needed something, my queen?" She hated when he called her those stupid ass nicknames. Made her want to punch things. Him, specifically. "Could you wait a second, you smooth talker?" She didn't say it as a compliment. Jiraiya didn't know why, but ever since he had entered the room Tsunade had been oddly nervous, anxious in his presence. "Leave as soon as you can get Shikamaru's ass up, you hear me? It shouldn't take you too long to arrive at the job site. He's got a big house so it'll be pretty hard to miss. You're dismissed."

* * *

As Naruto exited the Hokage's office, Tsunade turned her attention back to Jiraiya. An eery calm washed over her as the conversation she'd been waiting to have all morning began. "Naruto is the target in an assassination mission."

Jiraiya snorted as he sat down. "I have a network of spies that span the Elemental Nations. That's common knowledge. I'm kind of insulted you'd insinuate I didn't know."

"Then what about this, smart ass? Know anything about this?" A manila envelope slid across her desk to Jiraiya, who opened it with curiosity. The contents scared him; rightfully so, as the most feared Iwagakure survivor of the last Shinobi World war was shown, mere inches away from the child of the man who brought Iwa to it's knees. "My Kami, what is Havel doing in the middle of the damn village?! When was this!?"

Tsunade calmly bridged her hands together. "Earlier, around 1 or so. I let Panda's squad track him and follow him. I told them not to engage unless discovered. I figured he would gun it back to Iwa, but now, I'm not so sure."

Jiraiya's eyes widened. "You think he's the assassin, don't you?" She rose and gave him an explanation. "Wouldn't that make sense? He goes into the village to scout his target, ends up bumping into him, and, fearing he's compromised, hauls his ass back to holy land. Seems like I got it all figured out." She said the last line with a bit confidence, almost certain she was right.

He proceeded to kill her vibe. " As I said earlier, I'm not lacking in information. From what my sources have gathered, it's not actually Iwa that's behind this. An ex-Iwagakure shinobi, sure, but not the village itself."

Tsunade felt chills go down her frame. "Then what in the hell was he-" pointing to Havel "- doing in my village? Explain that!"

"He may have been helping the real assassin. It could always be that the missing ninja is actually working with the village. That way if he screws up we can't claim the village itself crossed any international lines. But still... if they're working together to kill Naruto, whats the point? Revenge? I could understand that but how did they find out he was a Namikaze? Nobody but us and the ANBU know that."

Tsunade moved on. "That's not important right now. We need to figure out how to protect Naruto and Shikamaru."

Jiraiya's light bulb in his mind went off. "Chances are, the assassin will dart once he realizes we're on to him. Have an ANBU squad tail the kids. When the assassin makes his move, the ANBU operatives mobilize. Simple counter-plan. 4-1 odds, minus the kids. 4 A-ranked shinobi vs. one B-rank, maybe higher." His face took on a much more cheerful outlook. "I like those odds, Tsunade-hime."

Much to her chagrin, she did too. Hell, she'd bet on those odds. But then again, that's probably what the opposition wanted: A Slug Sannin's bet against them.


	2. The Mission

**AN: Hello my fellow readers and writers. How'd you like the first chapter? Did I make a good first impression with my writing? Why don't you tell me about it and review this chapter for me, huh? That'd be great! And for those of you who know nothing about Dark Souls, I urge you to check it out! I've got both games, but honestly I like the first one the best. Maybe because I could actually beat that one... Well, back to the point: there'll be 3 characters I import from Dark souls. You've met one of them, kind of. The other 2 might surprise you but just know... I have a thing for Ornstein. He's just too badass to not get any attention!**

**And for many, including me, two weeks ago was finals week, and then christmas struck! As the old saying goes, "Finals got me all f*cked up!" I'm going to try and update every 3 weeks. Bear with me on this. Anyways, back to Red Smoke. Oh, and it'd be wonderful if you guys could vote on the poll I'm doing.**

**I don't own Naruto, duh... Why do people do this? Could they really come after us?**

Arc 1: The mission

Chapter 2: Showdown at Sundown

Heavy Havel of Iwagakure stomped his dull boots into the blood soaked ground, frowning at the mess he'd made. He was sure the Konoha trackers would catch this scent, especially those Inuzuka's. He proceeded to clean and patch himself up. But he was not a housemaid, nor a doctor. He wasn't a shinobi either. He was a warrior. He roamed the battlefield like the Reaper of Death roamed a graveyard, searching, hunting it's next victim. He put the Art of War into practice, and proved its strategies. The playground called War had one bully in it. He was that bully. But he was aging. His body creaked and cracked when traveling for too long, soreness overtaking him the next day. The brute he once was was being beaten soundly by Father Time, and given no mercy from Mother Nature. His grim smile revealed his thoughts about the past, his tumultuous journey to being who he was.

Born alone in an unforgiving world, he was thrown into the academy right away. He graduated with high expectations from the Tsuchikage, but no one else. Rising to Chuunin before the Second Shinobi World War erupted, everything changed. The armor he was given from the Tsuchikage had special powers, but also certain limitations. Yet it did not hinder him. If you were to simplify an Iwagakure assault team, it would've been a 16 year old kid, and an audience to watch the carnage. Veteran shinobi watched in awe as Havel stomped his way up to hostile settlements and mutilated everything. Even the earth was left scarred forever. Amegakure became a wasteland wherever Havel went. His terrifying results were relayed to the Tsuchikage. Iwagakure may have lost the war, but Havel's name was known. His infamy spread throughout Iwa, and the civilian populace were scared of him, a mere teenager. Most refused to be around him. The frustrations Havel experienced from this carried over to his anger. He wanted a change. He wanted to be liked, not feared. The coup he planned against the Tsuchikage never did begin to become plausible, due to an odd friendship he developed. One no one would have ever thought of.

Hawkeye Gough was an old, old figure. The oldest known being in Iwagakure to this day. At the time when Havel was still in his adolescence, Gough was around his mid 70's or so. Hailing from the clan that settled where Iwagakure was resurrected, legends were that they actually shaped and molded the Earth's many landscapes. His home was so beautiful that it looked like he had indeed made mountains out of nothing. This was more of a believable idea due to the fact that his clan were giants. Real, boulder lifting giants. But war and fertility issues with females became the catalysts for a dying breed. Gough was the last one left. He was living history. When in his prime, he could fire his bow and hit a target a mile away. Or an enemy, hence his nickname. The odd thing about this living relic was that he was completely blind. Not to worry though, because his hearing was that of a bat's.

Havel remembered the first time he had met Gough. Tending to his flowers and assorted shrubberies extremely carefully, he told Havel to stop making such a racket with his armor, and that no good ninja would be able to operate appropriately in such attire. Havel had the smart idea to remind Gough he wasn't a nimble creature himself. He'd just smiled and rose, walking silently over to his next lot of roses that needed to be pruned. It was here Gough had made Havel his first apprentice. Pruning his roses, he explained to Havel that appearances can be very deceiving. He gestured towards the sweet, beautiful red rose and the fangs (stickers) it bore. Havel made his only assumptions about Gough that day: he was a gentle giant, and a rough teacher. But being taught by a legendary figure helped one's reputation and character tremendously, and not to mention combat skills. Gough was positioning Havel to be Kage! Another war broke out, unsurprisingly, and he was again sent in. But this time, even he was overshadowed in terms of combat prowess. Minato Namikaze was the talk of the world; he could teleport! And he could do it while killing Rock Ninja! Havel was taken aback by how everyone he once knew were suddenly gone. Had this man really done so much to affect a whole village? Of course he had; Havel had done the same years before. The war ended, with the same outcome. Hostile peace ensued. The hatred for Konoha ninja began boiling and breeding. Iwa was a village full of sore losers. At least, that was what Gough had thought. Havel would've been the next Tsuchikage before Onoki, but even Gough said he lacked the decision making abilities a leader needed.

Now 105 years old, Gough didn't get around too much. Usually a public figure, he stayed home and let people visit him. Havel thought it was best for him to rest as much as possible. He didn't want the only father figure he'd ever had to die yet.

Havel realized he needed to move. Sheathing his sword and turning to the blazing sun, he set out , heading for home.

* * *

The life support machine whirred softly, it's motor running to keep a boy alive who should be dead. Konoha's I.C.U. had been vastly revamped as of late. Yet, this little box of life was the only thing keeping Sasuke Uchiha breathing.

No doctors were allowed to enter this room. Only the Hokage was allowed to walk past the threshold of two solid titanium doors, reinforced with Earth chakra.

The little machine droned on, whirring in its systematic way.

All at once, the lights went out, the doors bent and crumpled, and the machine exploded. A primal roar of angst, frustration, and confusion followed. Sasuke had woken up, and he was beyond pissed.

* * *

Tayuya sat in section C of the hospital, the portion for blood work and donations, and was quite irritated. She'd never had blood work done before, and she didn't see the need to do it now. Tsunade had given her a funny look when she was in her office, and the last thing Tayuya wanted to do was be in an enclosed space with her. Or a private room, for that matter.

But she was also intrigued. She never did remember where exactly she was from. Orochimaru had refused to tell her.

'I wonder why...', her sarcasm showing in her thoughts. She didn't give a shit about Orochimaru. If she were being honest with herself, she didn't care about anything. It wasn't like her life was stable long enough for her to attach to things. Always moving with Orochimaru, always being used for what he called a 'greater good' or some stupid shit like that... Starting to look back over some of her choices in life, she wanted to throw up. Or maybe that was the pill Tsunade gave her kicking in. Either way, she was feeling nauseous.

Apparently it was quite obvious, because when Tsunade opened the door, she immediately wanted to know what was ailing the young redhead. Tayuya's head pounded as she tried to make words. She couldn't before she folded over in her seat.

Tsunade hadn't been here an hour after her meeting with Jiraiya, and she was already having problems. Frowning, her thoughts went back to the pill she'd given the foul firecracker. It was just a blood pill for Kami's sake.

Then, an alarm rang. Tsunade knew what was happening. Sasuke Uchiha was demanding answers. She was going to give them to him, along with a serious backhand.

"... Do you understand, Hinata?" Hiashi Hyuuga had just finished his lecture about the leadership a clan head needed to display. His daughter just nodded at him. He could tell she really cared. Hiashi was worried about his eldest daughter. There was no way the older members of the clan would approve of a meek clan head. He wanted to change this. There were certain opportunities he could use to his advantage.

"Come Hinata, I must show you something", gesturing for her to follow him. He led her to his formal office, a great throne room full of victories and achievements of the clan since the Shodaime Hokage. The walls were lined with every book imaginable. It wouldn't surprise her if one of the bookcases opened up into a secret passageway. He shut the door behind them.

Walking over to a smaller desk by the door, he took ink and brush and proceeded to draw circles. They were in such various sizes and random places that Hinata could not decode what he was doing. There was a sort of mysticism about them, though. They glowed softly, and when her father put the brush and ink away, clarity was given to her. He'd made some sort of huge seal!

"Sit down, my daughter. We have much to discuss." Doing as she was told, the plush seat made her feel like if she sank far enough into it, she could disappear.

"This seal I've made, doesn't it look wonderful?" She said it did. He went on about the seal, and its origin. She listened intently to the words that eloquently flowed from his mouth. What intrigued her most was that the Byakugan could not pierce it. She'd never heard of anything stopping the Byakugan.

He finished talking when he noticed his daughter trying to use her Byakugan. He simply smiled, pleasant memories flooding his mind. Like the day she was born, the day her Byakugan activated and she cried from confusion of the new vision.

"Do you have any idea why we're here, Hime?" He hadn't called her that in years. She bit her lip.

"No Otou-san, I don't." His smile alarmed her, but in an odd way. She could almost feel his relief, his happiness. But what was he so happy about? The father she knew was a stoic, sometimes even bitter clan head. His odd behavior was beginning to confuse her.

"I want to talk to you about... the future. Your future, our future, everyone's future." His cryptic statement left Hinata wondering. The future? What did he care? Why was he all of a sudden so personal?

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean", she murmured. The uncertainty in her voice was evident.

Hiashi sighed. It sounded like a weight he'd had on his chest was beginning to lift, like a balloon when a child let it go. "One day you will take over this clan. That is, if you're strong enough to do so. There will be those that will want to tear you down." Hiashi's voice got deathly low. "And there will be those who will put you in the worst situations possible. Situations where, inevitably, someone will die. You have to be strong, not just for yourself, but for the people who look to you for guidance." Hinata knew what specific event he spoke of. Hizashi's death was something her father mourned over more than his wife's death. Not to say he didn't love her mother, but Hizashi was literally a sacrifice for the clan. He gave everything.

Yet, as much as she was seeing her father open up, there was still a struggle he had conveying his thoughts. Hiashi spoke, his voice becoming more clear." Hinata, I want the best for this clan as much as I want the best for you. But it's hard to balance both to the point where each is perfect. The best thing for this clan is to have no participation in this kunoichi tournament. My heart, however, tells me that this tournament is the best possible opportunity for you to grow and then show your strength and your aptitude." Hiashi sighed. "You have a gentle voice, not unlike your mother. You remind me of her so much it hurts. I regret I haven't been open with you like this all along my daughter, but the Hokage spoke with me yesterday. She wants you to train under her, to become strong like her. I assume that's why she summoned you. I urge you to accept her proposal. She's the best kunoichi that's ever walked this world. She'll make you more than strong enough to lead this clan."

Hinata, for her part, did a good job of holding her tears back. She'd never heard him talk about her mother to her before. What little she could remember of the pale woman was happiness, peace, and an overall tranquility. The part that really hit deep was his willingness to put everything he had- his reputation, his power, even his future- on the line for her just to be able to prove herself. Hinata couldn't let him down. Failure was not an option. She was going to become strong, prove her worth, become clan head, and then, one day down the road, the Branch House and the Main House would unite as one.

Slowing her emotional high, Hinata realized she needed to walk before she could run. She would accept the Hokage's request and fight her way through the adversity that comes with power. A part of her was scared, terrified even, but something else inside her was determined to prove herself to others.

Hiashi sat down slowly, contemplating his next words. "Hinata… I must warn you that if this is something you wish, the danger is extremely high. Not only are you going to be fighting the most skilled kunoichi in the world, the rumors are that it will be held in Kumogakure." Hinata shrunk at that last word. They'd already tried to abduct her once. Hiashi continued. "The people there hate us, dear. They will hate you as well. When rumor that a Hyuuga will be showing up for an event in Kumo, the world will be watching. I will do my best to protect you no matter the situation, but you know as well as I do that once we step foot in the village, not even I can protect you from the evil of others. Be strong, daughter. Your future depends on it."

* * *

As Tsunade rounded a corner of the hospital, she ducked to dodge a life support machine. Her eyes narrowed as she crept down the hallway, sitting at the corner of the next turn. Another glass shattering scream sounded through the air. He was right down this next hallway. He had to be. Steadying herself, she rose up. She gathered chakra into her right hand. Slamming it down, the shock wave ripped up the earth underneath the building in the direction of Sasuke. A dull thud confirmed that she hit something.

Rounding the corner with all the grace the Hokage could muster, she didn't expect to see Sasuke perched on one of her rocks, holding an ANBU as a sort of shield. His gnarled face wasn't as much of a concern as him being in his Curse Seal level 2 phase.

The demonic wings were an interesting trait, she had to admit. But what you turned into when using the cursed seal was a part of you. It symbolized your thoughts, your inner self. To her, he looked like an emo zombie that could fly.

_'Fitting,' _she mused. She was no psychologist, but she could tell what the wings represented. He wanted to to be free. To be free of his burdens, even if they were self imposed.

Settling into her stance, she concluded that she didn't want to kill the kid. All he'd ever been was a problem child, but she saw flashes of promise. If she could convince him that Orochimaru was nothing but a coward, then joining him wouldn't even be an option.

She didn't have time to talk as the body of the fallen ANBU slammed into ground in front of her. She didn't flinch ,either, as he roared his disapproval of the current situation. The small hallway made his wings useless, but those grotesque things weren't his only tricks. He lunged towards her, his arms outstretched, aiming to choke her to submission.

Like that was going to actually happen.

A slight move to the left and it was over. Her right hand had come across and knocked him through the wall. It would be a miracle if she didn't have to heal his jaw. She'd felt it shatter upon contact with her vicious backhand. Walking through the rubble, she entered into another hallway. There Sasuke laid, at the end of said hallway, his body slumped into a puddle against the shattered concrete and his jaw noticeably detached from it's original position. A nasty sight to see, for sure.

Lifting him by his tattered collar, she handed him to an ANBU operative that appeared beside her. A flurry of leaves later, and then she was all alone. Pondering her options, she realized she probably needed to get Tayuya and figure out her situation. You had to deal with one thing at a time in such delicate situations as these.

* * *

Griping and complaining for at least the last 30 minutes, Shikamaru Nara was not a happy camper. He was enjoying a sweet midday nap when he was literally dragged out of his home by the most idiotic human being he knew.

What a way to start the day off.

Naruto, on the other hand, was his cheerful self, not really noticing Shikamaru's bad spirits. All he could think about was getting this mission finished so he could be become a chuunin! Naruto Uzumaki, Chuunin... Yea, he liked the sound of that. It had a nice ring to it.

Shikamaru decided he didn't want to tree hop anymore, that it wasn't worth his depraved energy. Landing on the road they were following, he shoved his hands in his pockets and strolled along. His leisurely pace did not increase, nor decrease, when Naruto flew down, so full of energy you'd have thought he was the energizer bunny.

"What're you doing!? We have to keep running or we won't get there till dark!"

Shikamaru just breathed out a sigh. "That's the point genius. The councilman said his livestock only got attacked at night, so if we arrive at, say, dusk, we'll have put ourselves in a prime position to scout out the area and maybe even end the problem in one sitting."

Huffing and crossing his arms, Naruto decided to listen to the Nara. He was a Chuunin, after all.

A 6 hour walk and argument on who would be Jounin first was what it took to finally reach their client's estate. One would've thought Naruto had walked for 6 days, not 6 hours. "Finally! That took forever! I hope he's got some food for us."

Shikamaru just laughed, being a little hungry himself. The long gravel driveway made the house look a bit more like a mansion than it really was. It was a nice house, but not overly extravagant. Still, he wondered how a councilman dealing in agriculture and livestock could've possibly afforded this.

* * *

_2 hours before Naruto and Shikamaru arrived at the client's home_

"- and if you deliver him to us alive, we'll triple your pay. Do you accept?"

Kendo just stared. This was too good to be true. That was a lot of money to give one man. But the blue haired woman across from him seemed genuine. He didn't know why she or that councilman wanted the boy dead, but it didn't matter. Kendo wouldn't have to kill anyone ever again after this! "I accept. But I've got one question: Who is 'us'?"

Conan just smiled. "The enders of suffering, and the bringers of peace. We are Akatsuki."

All Kendo could do was nod.

* * *

A disheveled Tayuya followed a calm Tsunade as they entered the Hokage's office. Plopping down in the chair across from Tsunade, Tayuya felt like she wanted to hurl. Tsunade had asked her what was wrong but Tayuya couldn't pinpoint what she may have suddenly come down with. It was most likely from that Cursed Seal, though. Her migraines had increased when she had woken up in the hospital after fainting."Well kid, your results are back, so they may make you feel a little better. I'm surprised, though. No one ever told you where you were from? Orochimaru never mentioned where he may have stolen you from?"

Tayuya just shook her head. He hadn't. "I never heard him say anything about anyone's outside life. He was always so preoccupied with his work, his ideologies. He didn't care about anything but power and control."

Tsunade sighed. It sounded like typical Orochimaru to her. That prick. Oh well. The best she could do about him at the moment was keep him out of Konoha. They were really low on quality ninja at the moment, and she couldn't risk the body count she would face if she went after that sick bastard.

The Sand-Sound attack really had crippled them. It was more of an infrastructural blow than a cosmetic one. They had managed to take out the ANBU head office and a portion of the Academies. The ANBU office was just rebuilt, and she was running low on public funding. She may even have to pull some extra cash out of the Senju account. These days were crazy. This one was about to get a whole lot crazier. "Tayuya, the clan you come from is actually quite familiar in Fire Country. Oh, and we're related."

Her sickly sweet smile did nothing to ease Tayuya. In fact, it unsettled her so much she ran to the window and puked her guts out. The innocent bystanders at the base of the tower were mere victims, being splattered with vomit. One would look down and think someone was shot, the way people scattered from the area.

Tsunade waited patiently for the teenager to return to her seat, who appeared even more uncomfortable than when she walked in. Sitting down gingerly, Tayuya uttered a few soft curses to whoever had made her life suck so much ass. She'd kill that bastard Kami if she ever got the chance. Then the rational part of Tayuya's mind kicked in and started analyzing . Tsunade was a Senju, so was she a Senju? Or maybe from a clan who married into the Senju dynasty.

She frowned at that thought; Orochimaru had educated her about the Senjus. He noted their power, their extraordinary abilities to manipulate the elements around them as if they _were_ the elements themselves. When they moved, the world seemed to move with them. She found them interesting but not enough to study and research on. She was busy trying to survive for Kami's sake; She didn't have time to take a crash course on history. Tayuya knew that Orochimaru wanted to manipulate wood like Hashirama Senju, which he considered to be the most awe-inspiring, powerful Shinobi to have ever existed.

His addiction with history and strategy irritated her. It was like a paradox; He wanted to get stronger, but spent most of his time studying and reading vague entries on random subjects. It was beyond her that any of the useless gargle a guy that died some odd 900 years ago wrote was going to help you in the here and now. She just ignored it and scraped out a living. But now here she was in Konoha, about to discover her family lineage.

"I'm a Senju, aren't I?"

"No."

* * *

Shikamaru narrowed his eyes, his gut telling him something wasn't right. The house was completely dark, save for an outside lantern lit ominously. His ears strained to hear the soft grind of metal. Grabbing Naruto by the collar, he threw him into the bushes by the door. Shikamaru would be damned if this was an ambush and he didn't have at least a little surprise on his side. He could hear the key slide the bolt back, unlocking the door. It swung open suddenly and unexpectedly. He heard a loud thud from the other side of the now wide-open door. Naruto had tried to crawl out of the bushes and give Shikamaru a piece of his mind, but instead he got a piece of the door to his jaw. Naruto once again fell into the bushes, staying silent for a moment before groaning.

Shikamaru decided to focus instead on the vacant space in front of him. Someone was just here, unlocking the door, and then they had vanished. How odd. He noticed a note on the ground, it's quickly written scribbles telling Shikamaru that Mr. Marui was not home. He put a P.S. at the bottom, explaining the automatic door.

Shikamaru decided to ditch his original plan, feeling a wave of exhaustion wash over him. "Naruto, we're sleeping here tonight. We'll do our assignment tomorrow afternoon. Now get up, you troublesome baka."

A groan echoed through the evening air, followed by silence.

* * *

Tayuya's face wrinkled, the name foreign to her. "What did they do? Because if they did anything important, I never heard about it." She crossed her arms across her chest, waiting for Tsunade to explain.

"The Uzumaki clan saved this village on more than one occasion, and sacrificed everything for the greater good of everyone involved. We honor their memory by wearing this spiral patch that symbolized their nation." Tsunade grabbed a jacket from under her desk and tossed it Tayuya. She flipped the jacket over and stared at the symbol. This was the symbol of the Uzumaki….. this was the symbol of her clan. She'd noticed it on some of the Chūnin and Jounin vests during the invasion but paid it no mind. She certainly wouldn't have guessed that this was her clan.

She looked up to Tsunade. " So what does this mean for me? Are you going to make me stay here and live out the rest of my days rotting in this-?"

Tsunade cut her off. "That's up to you. Konoha doesn't have the legal power to make you stay, but I'm offering you citizenship in Konoha, with a chance to become a kunoichi."

There wasn't much of a problem Tayuya had with that proposition; Being a Kunoichi was all she had ever known. It wasn't like she had any drive to do anything else. All she could remember was being a Kunoichi.

And she would keep it that way, to hell with everybody else.

She stood up and faced Tsunade nose to nose, her eyes a distant brown. "I'll be the baddest motherfucker in this village. At your service, Hokage-Sama."

Tsunade almost jumped for joy. Having a presence like Tayuya amidst the shinobi ranks would be a major adrenaline dose they needed. She could already tell Tayuya wasn't going to take shit from anyone, especially people she would have killed a month ago. Finally Tsunade had a hard ass kunoichi she could direct. Even better that they were related. Tsunade was honestly surprised at how well the girl had adapted. When they had brought her back with the other injured, she was unconscious. That didn't last long, though. She was up and roaring the next day, her urge to fight and kill, to force and conquer not quite gone. But not for Orochimaru.

The only reason she wanted to rip Shikamaru's head off was because he'd beaten her. Tsunade had a creeping suspicion that the same anger was directed towards Temari, but it'd be unlikely she got that confession. Realizing she wasn't going back to Oto didn't faze her. She'd just snorted and turned away. Further talking to the redhead revealed she wasn't loyal to Orochimaru at all. He'd just given her a roof over her head, and a means of survival. Oh, and tried his sick experiments on her, the Curse Seal being evidence of one such occasion.

Tsunade would have had sympathy for the girl, but she didn't need any. Hell, she was tougher than most of the Shinobi currently in field duty. All she needed was a seal over the one Orochimaru had given her, and her strong will could fight it off. Tsunade was sure of that.

A knock on the door redirected Tsunade's thoughts. "Come in".

Hinata slid in, shutting the heavy Oak doors behind her. She strode to the remaining chair in front of the Hokage's desk and sat down, nervously twiddling her fingers. To make this a little more private, she barked for an ANBU to take Tayuya to her temporary residence. "Well Tayuya, I trust this has been a beneficial meeting to the both of us, and I look forward to seeing you in combat. Now get some rest.." Seemingly from the shadow of a far corner, a man sprung out and grabbed Tayuya by the arm before she could protest.

Tayuya was gone in the blink of an eye. Then the awkward silence came. Neither woman spoke, Hinata too unsure of herself and Tsunade too intrigued.

Tsunade sat down across from Hinata, the large desk separating them. "How's your team been Hinata? Everyone doing okay? What about Neji? How's he feeling these days?"

Hinata started off slowly, explaining that her team was more than functioning as of late. Tsunade smiled thinking about how well their strengths meshed and covered each others' weaknesses. Sarutobi had chosen a hell of a team, that was for sure. And Kurenai seemed to be instructing them properly.

But Hinata's next answers worried her. "Neji-nii-san is doing alright. He still has a large amount of pain when he tries to move certain ways. He should be getting better though, right?"

If she were honest with herself, Tsunade didn't know. He could have really messed up his spine, but she had no idea without taking a look personally. "I'm sure he will Hinata. Neji's too strong to let something like that keep him down." She didn't have much confidence backing those words; she'd have to check up on him sometime. But Hinata was oblivious to this and just smiled, Tsunade's words making her feel a little better.

Tsunade decided to move onto business, since formalities weren't her specialty anyway. "So, you've heard about the whole kunoichi tournament thing, correct?" A quick nod answered Tsunade's question. "Good. Less explaining on my end… Look Hinata, your father and I spoke recently and we concluded it'd be extremely risky if you were to participate. But it'd also send a message to Kumo that we don't give a damn about them. Plus, it gives me a great excuse to take on new apprentices. Along with Sakura and Ino, you'll be under my direct instruction. With Sakura and Ino, I've decided to teach them more medical ninjutsu so they can become med-nins, but with you and your Byakugan, I'm hoping to teach you my strength and how to integrate that with your ability to see chakra coils. All of you will be doing the same chakra control exercises, since each field requires incredible chakra control."

"Hokage-sama, I'd be honored to be your student, but you and father both will have to sacrifice so much for me. W-What happens if I'm not strong enough? What happens if I disappoint you?"

Tsunade just frowned. Damn did she hate that lack of self confidence. "Hinata, I wouldn't be telling you this if I didn't believe in you and trust you to represent this village. Besides, I feel that with your Jyuuken and the agility you possess, you're already a very good close range fighter. I could help you improve _tremendously_. " Tsunade balled up her fists and emanated chakra from them, showing Hinata that Tsunade could indeed help her improve.

"I would be honored to learn from the greatest kunoichi in all of Fire Country", Hinata said while she rose from her chair and bowed low to show respect.

"Great. I'll see you tomorrow then, midday. Be ready, Hinata. I won't go easy on you." A light smile met a hopeful Genin, who replied with an exuberant, "Hai Tsunade-Shishio!"

As the door closed behind Hinata, an ANBU messenger bird plopped down a scroll with a wax _N_ crudely plastered as a seal. She had been waiting for this letter for hours. Unraveling it, Tsunade read the contents carefully. Setting the report down, her thought took over. 'Thank Kami. Nothing bad's happened yet. In position and waiting, huh? Shouldn't have to wait too long… I hope these guys don't screw up. Or I'll kill them myself.' She stopped that line of thought. These were the ANBU she was talking about. The best of the best, the strongest ninjas who didn't even officially exist. They were ghosts, making up the shadow the Will of Fire creates. At least, that was the way her grand uncle had put it. '_What we can't see, will kill what you do see.' _

Tsunade just snorted at that thought. She was pretty sure that was on a plaque buried in the ANBU office. Along with a picture of Tobirama, standing there, his expressionless face contrasting his oddly red eyes. Oh, how her clan was strange. Strange, but powerful. She swelled with pride thinking about the old days, when Senju was a name synonymous with power, not just legends. Thinking of Tayuya and Naruto, she wondered if it was the Uzumaki clan's turn to rise, to ascend to the upper echelons of power and infamy.

Little did Tsunade know, the Uzumaki clan was going to be the strongest clan to exist. The path would be odd, unique, but they would rise. Nothing could keep an Uzumaki down for long.

**AN: Wow, I wanted to end in a completely different place than here. But me being me, I got distracted, and then had no inspiration. It all culminated about 3 days ago, when I finally convinced myself I had to put something out for people to read. I had to let you know I wasn't a one chapter wonder, after all!**


	3. The Brawl Begins

Chapter 3: A/N: Hey people! Whats been happening? Anything crazy? Got any ideas for me? I love to hear suggestions and those types of things! I love reviews, too…. Well I would, IF I HAD ANY! C'mon people just leave a little something for me! All I get to see is how many people saw it, not how many liked it or thought it sucked. I'm a pretty blunt human being, so I can take a flame or 2. No problem there. I have a theory on Fanfiction…. Fanfic writing, for the addicted fandom members, is a sort of therapy to us. It lets us express all these ideas we have locked up on certain subjects. Here, we get to run wild! We get to express ourselves! Before I knew about this fallen part of heaven, I wrote down everything in my drawing journal. I've still got that old thing….. Anyway, like I said, it's a type of therapy. We do it because, maybe it makes us feel normal. Or because it satisfies our inner self. Something along those lines. Personally, I read because there's only so many ideas one person can have. No offense to Kishi, but he didn't put time travel, a resurrected Uzumaki village, OR have Minato be the secretary of the Shinigami! Those are just some of the crazy ideas people have had! And I love them! They're great! Great twists, plot lines, AU, crossovers, all that stuff! I think it's wonderful how people come together over such things….. Oh and in case you haven't noticed, my A/Ns are kind of just rambling *loud laugh while trying to remain as normal as possible but failing miserably*.

Anyways, I don't own Naruto…. yet

Arc 1: The Mission

Chapter 3- The Brawl Begins

"Tako, this is Tsuru. You have a clear shot on that back door, huh?" Tsuru waited for the reply from his squad mate. His radio crackled to life a moment later, Tako replying, "Affirmative Tsuru, no movement ever since the councilman walked out the front door to report to the village. Everything's dead still."

Tsuru had been chosen personally for this mission, his ANBU squad being called upon. Nothing was unusual about this except for the fact that they weren't protecting the councilman. They were protecting young shinobi. They'd been briefed thoroughly on the situation, though. A counter ambush was what it was simplified to. It was supposed to be a simple 4-on-1 beat-down,

But he couldn't shake the feeling that there was something else to this. Of course, that wasn't his job. If they wanted him to think and develop theories, he'd be in the T&amp;I labs looking at shit in clear bottles. He was here instead, because his job was to follow orders. He believed in his Hokage and her decisions, so that was good enough.

Tsuru's gaze drifted to the right of him, to his best friend. "Suzume, keep a close eye on those windows. Watch the shadows". He smiled as he heard her roar at him through the walkie talkies. "No shit Sherlock! Been doing that for the past 12 hours! Say some dumb shit like that to me again and I'll tree hop over there and beat the shit out of you!"

Tsuru couldn't help but chuckle. Kami, he loved that girl. Maybe he'd ask her out when they got back. Of course, he'd need to notify his wing-man right away. "Hey Wani, get your fat ass up. Seriously dude, you better not be sleeping." The silence on the other end told Tsuru his buddy had indeed passed out. His shift would start in two more hours, so Tsuru was fine with him sleeping just a bit longer. Suddenly his radio whirred to life. It was Tako. " We've got a problem over here, Tsuru. Looks like someone or something just snuck into that old barn in the corner of the plot. I'll check it out. Cover me."

And just like that, this became business. Tsuru rounded the property to a large Oak whose branches hung over the barn loft. Setting down carefully, he spied Tako easing into the barn's front doors, slipping inside and disappearing.

Tsuru's radio once again went off. This time it was Suzume. "Everything okay over there? I can't reach Wani at all. This isn't right." The worry was evident in her voice which, usually controlled or at least even, quivered slightly. "Suzume, get Wani and tell him to-!" His speech was cut off by a piece of paper that wrapped around his mouth. Acting quickly, he dropped his radio and drew his katana. He tore the paper off and cursed; An ambush on another ambush.

He dropped to the ground below and ran into the barn, trying to find Tako as quickly as possible.

What he found inside was even worse.

Hanging by a cord of blood-soaked paper from the ceiling was Tako, his body cocooned in a shell of explosive tags, head laying limply to one side. As Tsuru turned around, he felt something coiling around him, like a snake. He tried to substitute, but the object was already around him, squeezing, crushing his ribs. The last thing he saw was a blue haired woman slowly walking towards him, her expressionless face fading away along with the rest of his vision. '_So much for a happily ever after ending, huh…...' _

Conan watched in silence as the ANBU agent's body caved in on itself. His blood leaked through her paper chakra shell she had made for him. '_Only one more left. These two were easy, unlike the fat one.'_

She had indeed encountered trouble killing the ANBU she found napping. His alligator mask had intrigued her, especially when it opened and attempted to shoot fire chakra out. She stuffed it with paper to prevent a scene from unfolding. He died shortly after when one of her pieces of paper found its way down his throat. The mini-explosion turned him into soup. Quite a disgusting scene, but Conan would do anything to achieve peace. For Nagato.

* * *

The reason she wanted to even be an ANBU escaped her at the moment. Suzume shook, her nerves haywire. She had the sinking feeling she was being hunted. Her katana drawn, she rotated wildly, checking every direction. Trying to make her way back to where Wani was, she stumbled over a dead tree, and landed in a sticky goo. Rising up from the ground, she realized what it was: It was Wani. Or what was left of him. This was the last straw. She knew the others were dead, too. Tsuru hadn't responded to her emergency call. Suzume sheathed her katana and started sprinting back to Konoha. She couldn't complete this mission, not with everyone dead.

As the tears slipped out from under her mask, she couldn't help but feel like a coward. She should stay. And avenge her comrades. Resolving to stay and fight, she stopped running and turned around. She was going to make her final stand here, in the forest. And take whoever had killed her friends to hell with her.

She unsheathed her katana and deflected a thrown kunai, her eyes darting around for the murderer. " Face me!" Nothing moved.

ANBU agents were trained to not let emotions control their actions. Yet Suzume forgot the cardinal sin of an ANBU, and was determined to get even. " Why would you do this? What did they need to die for?"

She didn't expect the voice to be feminine. "Your friends died for the same thing you will. Peace."

Suzume never saw the paper spear that embedded itself in her back, nor the fact that it was made almost entirely out of exploding tags.

* * *

Conan's job was done. She had eliminated all the extracurricular threats for the assassin, and it was now his turn to deliver. She had to hurry back to Amegakure unfortunately, as Nagato needed her for something.

All would proceed as planned, even if she were not here. She trusted that Kendo was, at the very least, competent enough to take down a teenager and a defective container. He should've been moving into the area now. The explosions were his signal to begin.

Tree hopping around the square tract of property, she was careful to stay out of sight. No need to chance an accidental sighting. Feeling she had gained adequate distance, she made her paper wings and took off, heading for Ame.

* * *

"Naruto get the hell up! We've gotta move! The client may be in danger!" Shikamaru tried desperately to wake Naruto up, but he wouldn't budge. The explosions had thrown Shikamaru out of his guest bed. He had immediately went to check on the councilman, but he was nowhere to be found. Shikamaru's mind was racing; Why attack the councilor now, with two ninja here? Or were these blasts distractions for an ambush? He had to find out before someone died.

So now here he was, trying desperately to wake Naruto and find out what was going on. "Get up Naruto, people are dieing here while your lazy ass is asleep!" He grabbed Naruto's shoulder and

rolled him onto his back. With a quick slap, Naruto woke right up. "Eh?! What the hell Shikamaru?! Get off me!"

Naruto shoved Shikamaru away, across the room. Shikamaru didn't have anymore time to waste trying to get that baka up. "For Kami's sake Naruto, we're being attacked! Get off your butt and let's go!"

Naruto's mind switched gears after hearing the situation. Grabbing his kunai and shuriken pouches, he followed Shikamaru to the ground floor in only his boxers and t-shirt. Struggling to strap the pouches to his person, he fell down the stairs and tumbled into Shikamaru. They landed in a pile at the bottom of the staircase. Fumbling around each other, they finally made it to the back door. Bursting through at full speed, Naruto followed Shikamaru.

Stepping out into the early morning sun, they had to squint while their eyes adjusted to a new set of surroundings. Shikamaru focused, his mind going a million miles a second. Clones would be an effective way of finding the perpetrator, but the element of surprise would be non-existent. He had two options: Get loud with the clones and root out the attacker, or be stealthy and, if given the chance, ambush this asshole. Factoring in things like Naruto's inability to remain silent and the fact that they knew nothing about what was happening, Shikamaru had a brilliant idea. Or rather, just a regular thought for a Nara.

Turning to the blond, he said, "Hey Naruto, I've got a plan." Of course Naruto was more interested in the fact that he didn't have any pants on.

"Naruto! Pay attention! I need you to pull this off, or we might not catch whoever set off those bombs!" Naruto's frown told Shikamaru he really wanted some pants. Sighing, the Nara decided to put his plan in motion. "Alright, so we're gonna split up. There were four explosions okay? So you and your clones are gonna check three while I check one. Once your clones get to a site, tell them to stay there in case he's around, or tries to cover anything up. If something happens in an hour, send me a clone. I'll be North, Northeast-ish of here. Let's go. The councilor must've left when things went down. Let's hope he was far away from those blasts."

Shikamaru started to tree hop to his destination, but not before he witnessed Naruto make a crazy amount of clones, one rushing into the house to get the real Naruto a pair of pants. Shaking his head, he had to admit it'd be pretty embarrassing facing an opponent without any pants on.

After a short time of searching, smoke appeared through the trees. Shikamaru decided it was worth a look. He dropped down into the underbrush of the forest and crept closer to the point of origin. His eyes focused on the rubble strewn about the small plot, and the scent. He couldn't quite place the smell. It was like a coppery, metallic smell mixed with explosives powder.

Stepping out of his cover, Shikamaru walked over to the remnants of a building, noting the blood smears and sprays literally everywhere. This was something out of a horror movie, his mind had processed.

Turning to go alert Naruto about his discovery, he was shocked to find a big, burly man blocking his path. At no more than 20 yards away, Shikamaru discerned his most notable features instantly: Broad, powerful shoulders complemented the rest of his humongous body, a scratched- through Iwagakure hitai-ate on his right bicep, the largest hands he'd ever seen, and a wicked smirk.

His mind going into overdrive, Shikamaru processed this information carefully. He had little to no chance of beating him in taijutsu, and due to the difference in body size, he guessed that he wouldn't be able to control him in his shadow techniques. Royally screwed was a nice way to put it. Unless…

"Who, uh, who are you? What do you want?" Shaking lightly, Shikamaru tried to hide his fear. Needless to say, it didn't work. He flinched as the man across from him barked out a laugh.

"Kid, you're dead. You and I both know it. No reason to sugarcoat it. Just so you know, I don't like killing children. That's for the weak, the sick minded."

His mind relaxed and Shikamaru saw it: his chance to get out of this alive. He would try to keep the man talking, try to play off his feelings of killing the young. Then he'd either escape or try to send a message to Naruto, whichever opportunity came first. "Then why kill me? That doesn't make any sense. In fact, what's the point in all this killing? Like you said, I'm gonna die anyway. You might as well put my mind at ease, huh?" Contrary to what he'd said, Shikamaru wasn't planning on dying. Far from it.

Turns out the big oaf didn't take much convincing. As Shikamaru drew a pack of cigarettes and a lighter to 'help his nerves', he raised the pack, as if to offer a smoke. If this worked, he'd praise his sensei till the day he died. The man across from him just shook his head. '_Damn, must not be a smoker'_. Oh well, there were more tricks he could use.

"I don't what the hell all this blood and gore is from. That's wasn't me kiddo. I'm just here to do a job. My name's Kendo, by the way," the giant rumbled out.

Taking a large drag and exhaling the smoke, Shikamaru kept the conversation alive. "Mine's Shikamaru. So what's your job, then? Clean up duty? You don't look the type to take a back seat to action."

He barked another laugh. "Kid, if this were a play, I'd be the main character. All this-"he gestured to the bloody mess-" was like setting the stage for me to come down and snag a punk kid. You wouldn't happen to know anybody that wore an orange jumpsuit, would you now?"

Shikamaru's body tensed. He was here for Naruto... Not good. But why Naruto?

As fate would have it, a Naruto clone stumbled out of the woods. He failed to notice the enemy, instead making a beeline for Shikamaru.

"Hey Shikamaru, we found like 2 different places where somebody got roasted! It wasn't as bad as here though... Yuck!" The clone danced around, trying to get a lump of goo off the bottom of his sandal. A quick glance between Shikamaru and Kendo was the only spark needed.

Letting the cigarette fall out of his mouth, Shikamaru raced to the clone. Somehow, his enemy beat him there and smashed his fists into the head of the clone, dispersing it instantly.

His huge body rotated towards Shikamaru. "Just because I don't like killing children doesn't mean I won't. Now run you little punk." The edge in his voice was all Shikamaru needed to know he should leave.

Never looking back, Shikamaru took to the trees around him.

The hunt was on.

* * *

**_A Little Later..._**

Shikamaru flew into a clearing with the speed of an Olympic athlete. His breathing was erratic and shallow, eyes searching for a speck of orange. It had been half an hour and there was no sign of Naruto. Shikamaru feared the worst. It was understandable to do so. Kendo was the biggest man he'd ever seen, and he moved like Rock Lee.

Propping up under a tree, Shikamaru did what he did best: sat back and looked up at the clouds. Why him, why me? These were the thoughts that permeated his mind. The one single event Shikamaru could link this to would have been the invasion. Maybe Kendo was a rogue ninja who had been hired to clean up some problems from the invasion for the Sound ninja. After all, Naruto had stopped their trump card in Gaara. That in itself showed a tremendous upside for a young ninja, who the Sound wanted desperately to get rid of. Shikamaru couldn't help but feel like he was missing something. It's like there was a bigger picture he was missing, and at the center of it was Naruto. Even with the high level of intelligence he was gifted with, Shikamaru could not finish this puzzle.

'_Take a break and come back to it later'_, his mind begged. Relenting, Shikamaru realized he wouldn't solve anything if Naruto was dead. The analytical side of his mind deduced that Naruto had little to no chance of making it out the forest alive. On that same note, Naruto also had little to no chance to defeat Neji in the exams….. Shikamaru just had to smirk. Naruto Uzumaki could not be measured by statistics. His variables had varying variables.

Feeling reassured about his precarious situation, Shikamaru decided to draw some attention. Drawing an explosive tag from his weapons pouch, he threw it well above the tops of the trees and detonated it. Hopefully he'd draw Naruto's attention, and at the very worst he'd be able to throw Kendo off by distracting him.

Kami never was kind in these types of situations, unfortunately. Naruto broke the treeline and immediately met up with Shikamaru, his gaze being one of confusion.

"Who's the big guy that keeps popping all my clones? He's really fast." Naruto didn't seem worried, but then again he didn't know he was being hunted.

"Naruto, we've got to get back to the village right now! That guy, Kendo, is out here for YOU! He wants you dead, man. Someone else must be with him too, so we've gotta be really careful." The panic in his voice made him sound weak, more like a civilian than a ninja.

Naruto stubbornly crossed his arms. "How do you know there's someone else?"

Shikamaru explained his thoughts. "Kendo and I chatted for a second. He said he didn't cause all these kill-zones and blood splatters everywhere. So if it wasn't him, then there's obviously at least a second shinobi involved."

The grim looks on the boys' faces reflected their situation: near suicidal, if not impossible.

It got worse a split second later when a Naruto clone was seen flying through the woods before poofing away.

Out came Kendo, irritated and looking for a fight. The pathetic solid bunshins he'd been facing did not appease him. They were like ants: puny and weak, but nonetheless annoying in large numbers. "Fight now and die with ice in your veins or run and let me hawk you down like field mice!"

He roared for battle, thinking of all the money that was promised. His future rode on the death of a child. Kendo knew it was wrong, but since when were Shinobi honorable?

Shikamaru could only grit his teeth. Talk about a wrench in your plans…. There was no way they could outrun him, and he was keying Naruto, so if Shikamaru stayed to fend him off and let Naruto escape, he'd just breeze past Shikamaru. Fighting seemed like the only way, but their opponent was easily a Jounin in skill and Naruto only had one kunai.

Kendo surprised both of the boys and darted to Shikamaru first, a right handed superman punch cocked back. Rolling underneath Kendo's aerial form, Shikamaru watched as the ground where he was became dust.

There was no time to admire the power because Kendo was right on Shikamaru, a one-sided taijutsu battle beginning. Shikamaru did his best to dodge, but after receiving a swift kick in the ribs, he had to double over in pain. Suddenly he was saved by two Naruto clones who tackled Kendo, creating some distance between the two groups.

Naruto rushed to his friend and caught his fall. Spitting up some blood, Shikamaru knew a rib or two had broken. "Thanks for the save. This isn't looking good, he's too quick to fight head-up, and I'm not of much use in my condition. Maybe if you can distract him with some clones, I can get him with my Kagemane no Jutsu and then you come in with a Rasengan."

Naruto nodded "We'll show this guy not to mess with Konoha shinobi!" Naruto propped Shikamaru up against an Oak tree with a looming shadow.

'_Perfect.' _Shikamaru made his seals and got his jutsu ready. They probably had one chance at this, so it had to count.


End file.
